Phone RAM Prices Are Going Up: Could Storage Card Expansion Make A Comeback?

Last Updated:December 12, 2025, 07:40 IST

Memory prices are going through the roof because of the AI demand and phone brands are being forced to rethink their model.

The year 2025 is ending with a launch spree in the smartphone market and you have some serious players bringing their flagships that will easily carry forward a little longer into 2026. The one thing that everyone has been surprised about are the prices of phones like the OnePlus 15, iQOO 15 and a few more in the range of Oppo Find X9 Pro and the Vivo X300 series.

Hardware upgrades warrant a hike but this year has been unusually high, especially for the iQOO 15 which is over Rs 13,000 more than its predecessor.

And this change is being heavily blamed on the rise of AI which has made demand for RAM memory chips so high that companies are rethinking their focus to make more money.

In fact, one of the renowned memory chip manufacturers, Micron, has decided to completely shift focus on the retail segment and stop selling its products to consumers. But more than anything else, the RAM prices are going to reshape how phones are sold and that could see the traditional storage expansion slots making a comeback.

The Market Is Changing

AI has created job losses and the demand for GPUs and other memory chips have shot up which has a direct impact on how the phones are designed, including the components that go inside them. RAM prices shooting through the roof means companies will have cut back on other features, could be cameras or even lesser storage but expandable.

This has mostly gone out of fashion, at least with the mid-range and premium devices but AI could make them take a U-turn and offer buyers the option once again. Reports in China have already hinted at brands discussing the change, and we might hear more about it close to mid-2026 when the products go into the production pipe.

It is still early to estimate the chances of storage expansion becoming a reality but all the signs are heading in that direction. Analysts claim the DRAM shortage is unlikely to ease until mid-2027 which is going to have a heavy bearing on the whole industry across devices.